World chief Lapasset standing down to focus on Olympics

Bernard Lapasset will not seek re-election as chairman of World Rugby in May so that he can focus his attention on spearheading Paris' bid for the 2024 Olympics, he said in a statement on Wednesday. Lapasset, first elected to head the governing body in 2007, informed colleagues at a World Rugby executive committee meeting in Dublin of his decision to stand down. "Rugby has never been healthier and I am so proud of what we have achieved in growing the game around the globe." Lapasset was head of